by Chris Billowsin Think (Hockey)0 commentstags: Hockey Fights
Fighting is a part of hockey. At its worst it can be a hyped circus where mercanaries on skates beat the snot out of each other. At its best it can be a energizing moment where the players and crowd experienced a heightened sense of us vs them. The reality is that fighting is a reaction to intimidation and intimidation has been a part of sports, and hockey in particular for decades. Wayne Gretzky who was rarely a fighter and the greatest ambassador of hockey called it right on TV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YjHN1BDrbs&t=2m37s So this is why you see below you the collective fighting records of the Jets since their return to Winnipeg in 2011-12, courtesy of HockeyFights.com. Fighting is not appealing to everyone, but those who like it really like it. Rank Player Fight 2011-12 2012-13 Total Win% Main Page Totals W L D W L D 1 Chris Thorburn 20 6 4 1 3 4 2 52.50% 2 Mark Stuart 9 1 4 1 0 2 1 22.22% 3 Tanner Glass 7 1 6 0 – – – 14.29% 4 Andrew Ladd 4 2 0 0 0 2 0 50.00% 5 Evander Kane 3 1 0 0 1 1 0 […]

by Chris Billowsin Think (Hockey)0 commentstags: Jets Farm Team, Jets Improvement, Minor League Stats
The professional hockey world shifted a bit when Atlanta Thrashers relocated to become the Winnipeg Jets. Not only did the NHL get affected, but so did the minor league affiliations which needed to be reestablished. Atlanta had affiliations with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL and the Gwinnett Glaidiators of the ECHL. Those were ended in the summer of 2011 when Winnipeg established a new affiliation hierarchy by forming a new team in St. John’s and establishing an agreement with a new ECHL team, the Colorado Eagles. The purpose of this post is to track how the three teams have risen and fallen along side each other to see if there is any pattern. 2011-12 Regular Season Team G W L OTL P Win % GF GA Division Finish Season Change Colorado Eagles (ECHL) 72 38 28 6 82 52.78% 250 252 2nd, Mountain -7.83 pp * ↓ St-Johns IceCaps (AHL) 76 43 25 8 94 56.58% 240 216 1st, Atlantic — ** Winnipeg Jets (NHL) 82 37 35 10 84 45.12% 225 246 4th, Southeast +3.66 pp *** ↑ * same team from CHL, but considered to be an expansion franchise for the ECHL. For […]